ADOPTIVE COUPLE AGREE TO GIVE UP INFANT

Andrew Fegelman, Tribune Staff WriterCHICAGO TRIBUNE

Against the contentious backdrop that has surrounded the Baby Richard case, a west suburban woman quietly has regained custody of her son and agreed to drop a lawsuit against a Chicago adoption agency.

Attorneys for the woman said Wednesday the adoptive parents agreed to voluntarily relinquish custody because they "do not believe that protracted litigation in Illinois courts is in the best interests of the child."

What made the case unusual is that in her quest to regain custody of her son, the biological mother had invoked a federal law that applies only in cases involving adoptions of Native American children. The mother, whose identity is protected by court order, is a member of a Sioux tribe.

That law, enacted to curb abuses that in the past had often followed the adoption of Native American children, requires that parents wait 10 days after birth before consenting to an adoption. The law, known as the Indian Child Welfare Act, also requires judicial consent before an adoption can be granted.

In this case, the mother consented to the adoption of her son, known as Christopher, last Nov. 3, just three days after he was born in an Elgin hospital. She said she and her husband feared they could not financially support the child.

Within hours after signing the adoption papers, the woman's suit claimed that she changed her mind and that Easter House, the agency that handled the adoption, had pressured her.

When the agency refused to help rescind the adoption, the mother filed suit.

In a statement released Wednesday, the biological parents "conveyed their deep gratitude to the adoptive parents for deciding to return the child to them and that they appreciate that this decision was a most difficult and courageous one."